Super RIZIN 4 delivered fireworks in Saitama, Japan, but for Patricky Pitbull, the night ended with more frustration. The 38-year-old Brazilian veteran fell short against rising Japanese star Shunta Nomura in their lightweight clash, dropping a unanimous decision after three hard-fought rounds.
Nomura’s speed and footwork were the story from the opening bell. Constantly circling and darting in and out, Nomura outpointed Pitbull early, while the former Bellator champion struggled to find his rhythm. Pitbull looked to rely on counter strikes, but Nomura’s combinations were cleaner and more effective throughout.
By the third round, Nomura’s pressure began to pay off. He rocked Pitbull badly with a flurry of punches, nearly forcing a standing stoppage before the referee allowed the action to continue. A deep cut on Pitbull’s face prompted a doctor’s check, but he was cleared to fight on. Pitbull did land a late takedown, but Nomura quickly reversed position, controlling the final exchanges as the crowd roared.
The official verdict read 30-27 across the board, giving Nomura the biggest win of his young career — and extending Pitbull’s losing streak to four. At 38, the road back for Pitbull looks steep, while Nomura’s stock continues to rise in the RIZIN lightweight division.
Super RIZIN 4 also featured the continuation of both the heavyweight and flyweight Grand Prix tournaments, along with standout finishes like Alexander Soldatkin stopping Mikio Ueda with hammerfists, and Moeri Suda locking up an armbar submission over Noeru Narita. The card closed with a tense split-decision win for Mikuru Asakura over Kleber Koike Erbst in a fight that had the Saitama Super Arena buzzing.
Here’s the full list of results from Super RIZIN 4, including Nomura’s career-defining victory over Pitbull:
- Shogo Kuriaki def. Taiga Kawabe – Unanimous Decision
- Satoshi Kamiyama def. Masashi Inada – TKO (Punches & Elbows), Round 2
- Takahiro Ashida def. Naoki Tanaka – Unanimous Decision
- Yuki Motoya def. Hiroya Kondo – Unanimous Decision
- Hiromasa Ougikubo def. Jose Torres – Unanimous Decision
- Yuki Ito def. Nkazimulo Zulu – Unanimous Decision
- Alibek Gadzhiammamatov def. Takaki Soya – TKO (Punches), Round 3
- Makoto Takahashi def. Erson Yamamoto – Submission (Guillotine), Round 1
- Marek Samociuk def. José Augusto Azevedo – Unanimous Decision
- Alexander Soldatkin def. Mikio Ueda – TKO (Hammerfists), Round 2
- Moeri Suda def. Noeru Narita – Submission (Armbar), Round 2
- Tatsuya Ando def. Yang Ji-yong – Submission (Rear-Naked Choke), Round 2
- Seika Izawa def. Shin Yu-jin – Submission (Arm-Triangle), Round 1
- Naoki Inoue def. Ryuya Fukuda – Unanimous Decision
- Kyoma Akimoto def. Koki Akada – Submission (Rear-Naked Choke), Round 1
- YA-MAN def. Masanori Kanehara – KO (Uppercut), Round 3
- Shunta Nomura def. Patricky Pitbull – Unanimous Decision
- Mikuru Asakura def. Kleber Koike Erbst – Split Decision
